Gadget sales to top US$1 trillion this year: analysts

AP, LAS VEGAS

Tue, Jan 10, 2012 - Page 10

Developing countries like China and India will drive global sales of consumer electronics above US$1 trillion this year for the first time, even as cash-strapped shoppers in the US and Western Europe ease off spending for high-tech gear, industry analysts said on Sunday.

Developing countries would account for 46 percent of global gadget sales this year, up from 37 percent four years ago, according to GfK Boutique Research and the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA).

The groups presented their forecast ahead of the massive International Consumer Electronics Show, which begins today in Las Vegas.

Their estimate of global electronics sales for this year, at US$1.038 trillion, represents growth of 5 percent from last year. That compares to growth of 8 percent from 2010 to last year.

Consumers in China and other developing Asian countries, Latin America and Central and Eastern Europe are snapping up high-tech goods as they climb toward a middle-class lifestyle. Meanwhile, gadget sales in the US, Japan and Western Europe are stagnant, unable to command a higher share of consumer spending.

Separately, the NPD Group said on Sunday that US sales of consumer electronics fell 5.9 percent this past holiday season, as smartphones cannibalize sales of standalone gadgets like cameras, camcorders and GPS navigation devices.

Best Buy Co, the largest US electronics retailer, said on Friday that sales last month lagged because of weak traffic. Sales at stores open a year fell 1.2 percent for the month. However, sales were strong for smartphones, tablet computers and e-readers.

The CEA and GfK expect smartphones and tablets to be the hot products globally as well, to the exclusion of other devices.

“We’ll see most product categories slowing down or going into contraction,” said Steve Bambridge, research director at UK-based GfK.